Norway buys the most Teslas in Europe, thanks in part to a large 280-car fleet order from rental agency Avis.

The Netherlands nearly surpassed Norway as Tesla's biggest market in Europe last year, but thanks to a meaty order from Avis in Norway, Norway retained its status as Tesla's biggest market in Europe, reports Electrek. This is Tesla's biggest fleet order to-date, and per Gjengangeren, includes around 280 cars delivered to Avis in Skoppum, Norway.

Could it be easier than ever to get a rental Tesla on a Norwegian vacation, then? Well, not so fast. Reports note a rumor that Tesla wants to use a regular rental company to maintain a fleet of service loaners for them.

Given that Norway is a big market for Tesla, and owners of luxury cars expect to get a decent loaner when their car is down for longer repairs, this rumor makes a lot of sense. We'll have to wait and see if that rumor pans out, but as the report notes, increasing the availability of loaner vehicles could be part of Tesla's plan to improve its service in Norway.

Teslas have been so popular there that owners reported long wait times for service, and the general feeling that the company didn't have a service network fully in place to handle the amount of Norwegian Teslas on the road. So, letting a company like Avis that's already well versed in checking cars in and out handle those service loaners could take at least that stress off of the relatively new car company as it seeks to expand its service network.

This big fleet order was the only thing keeping Norway on top of Tesla's European sales numbers, though. Registration data cited by Electrek shows that 8,614 Teslas were delivered to Norway in 2018, while 8,585 went to The Netherlands. That's a difference of only 29 cars.